SARATOGA SPRINGS -- Skidmore College students raised nearly $2,800 for Camp Little Notch in Fort Ann with a series of events last Thursday, Friday and Saturday.

FemFest 2012 -- which featured a battle of the bands, a silent auction, spoken-word performances and a one-woman show -- was planned by students in a course that studies women throughout history called Disorderly Women. The course's professor, Beck Krefting, chose Camp Little Notch, a girls camp that celebrates diversity and community, as the beneficiary of her course's service learning component.

"We were looking for something that somehow paralleled what we were learning in class," Michelle Tarkulich, one of Krefting's students, said of the service learning project. "Camp Little Notch, because they're so inclusive in their goals, was a really good organization for us to partner with."

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The money raised during FemFest and by ongoing online fundraising by students will help Camp Little Notch offset the cost of financial aid for would-be campers from low-income families.

The students' goal is to raise a total of $5,000, and they will continue fundraising by soliciting donations via email. Donations can also be made directly to Camp Little Notch through the camp's website, www.CampLittleNotch.org.

Tarkulich said putting on the event taught students important lessons in building bridges between the college and the community.

"I think we learned a lot about ways that we as Skidmore students can connect with the outer community, whether it be the Saratoga community or the larger community or the Camp Little Notch community," she said.

Seth Johnstone, another of Krefting's students, agreed, adding that he hopes more events that bring students and the community together can be planned.

"It would be great to see the two, the campus and the town, get more connected," he said.